


i'm sure you think i've outgrown you.

by elysekovic



Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter/Funhaus RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Light Angst, Unresolved Emotional Tension, Weddings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-29
Updated: 2017-05-29
Packaged: 2018-11-06 10:28:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 776
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11034324
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elysekovic/pseuds/elysekovic
Summary: It’s the end of something that had never been.





	i'm sure you think i've outgrown you.

**Author's Note:**

> i don't really know what this is. i've been obsessed with barbara/burnie since what feels like the beginning of time, so i thought i'd throw my angst into the pot.

“This could be us, you know.” Her pink lips are drawn taut, a look of determination on the meat of her face. Her delicate fingers are on his neck, the material of the black tie held between her fingers as she ties it into a bow. He doesn’t trust anyone else to help him get ready―not even his own fiancee―because she knows exactly what he likes to do and she helps him minimize as much time as possible.

“What do you mean?”

He already knows the answer to her statement, knows that it could have been them before he met Ashley and before she met Aaron. They’ve always been yin and yang―opposites that balance out the natural world around them; her loud and obnoxious stature when he’s calm and collected, his tendencies to get blackout drunk while she remains sober enough to carry him home. Really, it’s surprising that they’re not together, he would’ve bet his bottom dollar that they would’ve been together by the time she reached twenty five.

There were times, Burnie thought, when they were so close―doing a delicate dance around each other waiting for the other to just make a move, but then it faltered, paused as he was drawn every which way with his duties as CEO of the company. He’s drawn back to reality as her fingers press the bow flat against his neck, pulling a face momentarily before she reaches out a bit to fix it. Her attention to detail when it comes to him is impeccable; it’s like he’s her work of art, and she won’t give up correcting minor errors until it’s― _he’s_ ―perfect.

“I’m glad you’re happy.” She ignores his question, leaves it to be another fluttering thought lost in the back of their minds. “I’m glad you found her.” She doesn’t talk about how she was almost _her_ ―almost the woman that captured his heart prior to Ashley’s existence in his life―but it’s better this way.

Burnie swallows thick, staring up at her doe eyes as he nods. He is happy, knows that she is too, and that’s all that matters. It doesn’t matter what could have happened―neither of them are going to spend the rest of their lives sitting up at two AM with their fingers hovering over the other’s contact like it’s a lifeline pulling them back from sea. Neither of them are going to run back to the other when things fall apart, these are the lives they’ve chosen for themselves and it’s unspoken that they have to reap the consequences of their choices.

She looks beautiful standing in front of him, pale pink lace gown hanging over her figure like it was meant to be on her. She’s not apart of the wedding party―Ashley adores her, but it was better for all parties that she wasn’t directly involved. They’re not as subtle about their feelings as they wish they were.

A grin rises on his aged face; she can see all the laughter lines that have made their home on his face over the long years, she can see the heavy, black circles behind his glasses from all of the late nights working on his prized show, she can see everything, and her breath catches in her chest. She’s sure this feeling will pass.

“Yeah, me too.” He replies, patting the back of her hand before she draws it away, hands moving back to her sides as she stares at him. “Thanks, Babs.”

She nods, giving him a shy smile―one that he hasn’t seen in what feels like years―before glancing over her shoulder to the analog clock on the wall. “I should get going, gotta find my seat with Aaron.” She reaches out for him, pressing her warm hand against his rosy cheeks. “Good luck, Burnie. You’ve really found yourself a keeper.”

With that, she’s gone―her presence is like a ghost, leaving him with an aching that he can’t quite place.

Geoff steps in, taking her place with a pointed look―like he knows something happened in the room, interrupting the happiest moments soon to come. “You good?” He asks, gruff voice a hard transition from the delicate voice of Barbara Dunkelman.

“‘Course, man. Are we ready?” Burnie avoids eye contact with his friend, staring up at himself in the mirror instead. He can see Geoff nod out of his peripheral. “Let’s do this.”

“Let’s do this.” Geoff echoes, patting Burnie on the shoulder as he follows the man out of the dressing room.

It’s the end of something that had never been, the beginning of something beautiful to last forever.

**Author's Note:**

> title from malibu 1992, a song i've claimed for burnbara. 
> 
> hit me up on [tumblr](http://elysekovic.tumblr.com).


End file.
